Capitol Quotes: April 29, 2011

“Well, certainly, the governor should not call herself a school choice governor at this point. I hope that she will regain that status in the coming session.” – Clint Bolick of the Goldwater Institute, reacting to the governor’s veto of a bill to expand the state’s STO program.

“They’re basically Neville Chamberlains when it comes to the war on Tucson that’s being waged out of Maricopa County and I’m hoping they will see things a little differently.” – Pima County Democratic Party Chairman Jeff Rogers on two Democratic members of the Tucson Unified School District who have questioned the effectiveness of the ethnic studies program and want to see it altered.

“Mrs. Vong would like the opportunity to prove her case and the fish would like to get back to work.” – Clint Bolick’s last words to the Arizona Court of Appeals as he urged the court to side with his client, a Gilbert nail salon owner who has been prohibited by the Board of Cosmetology from the practice of using small fish to nibble the calluses off feet.

“I got a little ticked off. I had some bills killed by some folks in the House in a very sneaky, vindictive way after I bent over backwards to accommodate them with amendments. Then they stood up on the floor and killed my bills on final read. I was half tempted to say screw running for Congress. I’m coming back to make sure none of your stuff sees the light of day next year.” – Sen. Frank Antenori on his conflicts with House colleagues and the possibility that he’ll run for Congress in 2012.

“If you had to put a value on Senate Bill 1070 and it was worth a dollar, we got 80 cents on the dollar.” – Phoenix Law Enforcement Association President Mark Spencer, on the “sanctuary city” provision of SB 1070, which was left intact when a federal judge enjoined other key sections of the law.

“It was a hard decision. It’s a career move that I’ve been planning for many years. I hate leaving the governor. She’s been good to me. It’s been a real blast.” – Joe Kanefield, Gov. Jan Brewer’s counsel, on leaving the Governor’s Office for the private sector.